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It’s time to put a little gas-gas-gas back into the ol’ Tour Bus and give it another spin, because Grateful Dead is very pleased to announce the debut of a new series of archival releases called Road Trips!

Here’s the deal: We all loved the Dicks Picks series. Over the course of 36 amazing releases between 1993 and 2005, GD archivists Dick Latvala (R.I.P.) and David Lemieux continually blew our little minds plucking one righteous show after another from the vaults, from classics like the February ’70 Fillmore East run (DP4) and Englishtown ’77 (DP 15), to overlooked masterpieces like 9/28/76 (DP 20) and 9/21/72 (DP 36), and shows not in general circulation among traders at the time, such as the February ’68 shows of DP 22 and the superb “Houseboat Tapes” from August 1971 that made up DP 35. Coupled with the many exceptional releases culled from multitrack tapes (the Fillmore West box, Steppin’ Out, The Grateful Dead Movie Soundtrack, Nightfall of Diamonds, et al) and the popular Download Series, there’s been a lot of musical territory covered over the years… but not all of it, of course—not even close!

With Road Trips we’re going to try something a little different. We want to plug in a few more pieces of the Grateful Dead puzzle by putting the spotlight on different tours and series of shows that have been neglected through the years. Take Road Trips Volume 1, Number 1, for instance. This two-disc set (plus a special Bonus Disc - now sold out) was culled from the Dead’s blazing fall 1979 East Coast swing, when the band was just hitting its stride with new keyboardist Brent Mydland. You’ll find killer versions of “Dancing in the Street” > “Franklin’s Tower,” long exploratory jams on “Playing in the Band” and “Terrapin,” a rattle-your-brain “Shakedown,” and lots more, all pulled from the master tapes in the vault and expertly mastered in HDCD for maximum power and clarity by Jeffrey Norman. The sold out Bonus Disc offers another hour-and-a-quarter of highlights from the tour. (You can find the complete track listings for all three discs here.)

Every Road Trips release will come with a beautifully designed booklet containing an essay about how the music on the discs fits into the Dead’s long history, plus many rare and never-before-seen photographs. We think you’ll agree it’s a pretty cool package. But wait, there’s more (as they say)! When each “edition” of Road Trips is announced on this site, we will also give you a link to an affiliated site devoted to the series which will include such goodies as articles and reviews from the tour (See one reviewer after another mess up Grateful Dead song titles! See the band savaged by cretinous critics!); additional photos; and any other weird/cool stuff we come across. Together we can paint a really rich and vibrant audio-visual picture of different stops along the Grateful Dead highway!

And this is just the BEGINNING of what we promise will be a tidal wave of releases, which will include more rarities from the deepest corners of the vault, multitrack releases, box sets (the patient will be rewarded; nudge-nudge, wink-wink, say no more), DVDs, downloads and who-knows-what-else. So keep your Third Eye tuned into this space for more in the coming weeks and months!

--Blair Jackson

A Few AFAQ’s (Anticipated Frequently Asked Questions) About Road Trips

Sounds pretty interesting, but what took you guys so frickin’ long? We thought you’d forgotten us. Naw, we never forgot you. It’s just taken a little longer than expected to get the ball rolling again and to figure out how to move forward in a way that will satisfy and hopefully also expand the fan base. As a certain sage known to all of us once wrote: “It takes time to pick a place to go…”

Is Dicks Picks over, done, kaput? Yes, that series of releases ended with Volume 36. It will continue to be available, however. Road Trips will have a little more flexibility than Dicks Picks, in that we are not limited to full-show releases, or even 2-track tapes…or anything for that matter—we haven’t made any rules about what IT is. I guarantee we’ll surprise you from time to time.

But we want to hear full shows, too! Don’t worry, there will definitely still be full-show releases. We’ll have more on that soon.

OK, I guess it might be pretty cool. I’ll check it out. In fact I’ve got a ton of ideas of shows and tours you guys should be releasing… Well, let’s hear it. Of course we want your well-reasoned insights and input! The Dead have always looked to Dead Heads for inspiration and ideas, and you’re needed now more than ever!

I was sort of hoping that when I came back from my travels I would have received Road Trips and the copy of Rockin the Rhein I ordered at the same time (left the last one in a hire car!)

Amazingly I have been given a partial refund on the postage for these items even though I have not received them! I am of course grateful for that, but if anyone out there can help persuade the mail order people to resend these items I would be even more grateful!

Order Number: 0011585
Order Date And Time: 11/03/2007

Judging by feedback on Eurotraders many others in Europe have also not received copies yet.....what the hell went wrong? Most US mail order operations (even the small ones) deliver in a week or so and charge at cost. What assurances can we get that this whole farce will not be repeated next time. I really think that those responsible for mail order owe us an apology, an explanation and a real assurance that the service will improve. Is that too much to ask?

PS Please feel free to insert appropriate profanities throughout the above, there are many there I assure you, but you just can't see them ; - )

I guess 1979 is an under-represented year ... but after listening to Road Trips (I finally got mine), I can see why. It seems that the whole band tends to play back up to Brent. I guess if Road Trips is a compilation of the best 1979 had to offer, then I guess there is no reason for any more 1979 shows. Let it die.

FELLOW LOVER'S OF THE BOYS, (& DONNA) a) WE MUST WRITE AS MANY E & SNAIL MAILS AS POSSIBLE TO EVERY POSSIBLE INLET AVAILABLE TO US. 1) FIRST, BEGGING FOR ENTIRE SHOWS, NOT BITS & PIECES. PLEASE. 2) I KNOW, ABSOLUTELY, THE BAND HAD VIDEO TAPED EACH & EVERY SHOW FROM ABOUT '84 - '85 ON 'TILL THE END. I WANT MEMORIES AND RAW EMOTION. THANKS. I WANT THE ENTIRE SHEA'S SHOW THE OTHER NIGHT WITH NOT FADE!!! IT IS SICK.

The compilation concept just plain suxs. Unless I get the whole show or at least most all of it count me done.
WHO WAS THE ASSHAT THAT DREAMED THIS UP?
In today's digital world don't you think we are capable of creating our own compilations, or are we too stupid or stoned?
I suppose we all are supposed to buy all the compilations and reverse engineer them into full shows.
These Road Trips are headed for a Breakdown!
The early bird gets the worm but the second mouse gets the cheese.

Having seen MaryE's inquiries, I checked the spam filters too, just in case a lost post magically appeared. Sorry Kennyw..... I don't have an answer either, but I don't think your posts were intentionally deleted by anyone.

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